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The Greek
The Archaic Period. Greece was divided into many small self-governing communities, a pattern largely dictated by Greek geography: every island, valley and plain is cut off from its neighbors by the sea or mountain ranges, but in the 8th century BCE saw the rise of the Polis (City State). A mercantile class arose in the first half of the 7th century, shown by the introduction of coinage in about 680 BCE. This seems to have introduced tension to many city-states. The aristocratic regimes which generally governed the poleis were threatened by the new-found wealth of merchants, who in turn desired political power. From 650 BCE onward, the aristocracies had to fight not to be overthrown and replaced by populist tyrants ''(meaning:''illegitimate ruler). Rapidly increasing population in the 8th and 7th centuries had resulted in emigration of many Greeks to form colonies in Magna Graecia (Southern Italy and Sicily), Asia Minor and further afield. The emigration effectively ceased in the 6th century by which time the Greek world had, culturally and linguistically, become much larger than the area of present-day Greece. Greek colonies were not politically controlled by their founding cities, although they often retained religious and commercial links with them. The emigration process also determined a long series of conflicts between the Greek cities of Sicily, especially Syracuse, and the Carthaginians. In the second half of the 6th century, Athens fell under the tyranny of Peisistratos and then of his sons Hippias and Hipparchos. However, in 510 BC, at the instigation of the Athenian aristocrat Cleisthenes, the Spartan king Cleomenes I helped the Athenians overthrow the tyranny. Afterwards, Sparta and Athens promptly turned on each other, at which point Cleomenes I installed Isagoras as a pro-Spartan archon. Eager to prevent Athens from becoming a Spartan puppet, Cleisthenes responded by proposing to his fellow citizens that Athens undergo a revolution: that all citizens share in political power, regardless of status: that Athens become a "democracy". So enthusiastically did the Athenians take to this idea that, having overthrown Isagoras and implemented Cleisthenes's reforms, they were easily able to repel a Spartan-led three-pronged invasion aimed at restoring Isagoras. The advent of the democracy cured many of the ills of Athens and led to a 'golden age' for the Athenians. The City States. The number of city states change through time, but the five most important were. # Athens: Athens was thought to be the intellectual center of the Greek world, known to study of subjects such as science, philosophy, and history, to name a few. # Sparta: Sparta was unique in ancient Greece for its social system and constitution, which completely focused on military training and excellence. # Corinth: One of the largest cities in the Greek area, got rich through trade, especially through trade of black-figure pottery. In the late 6th century engineers of Corint invented the Trireme, which became the standard warship of the Mediterranean. # Megara: A small but populous state of ancient Greece, west of Attica and north of Corinth, whose inhabitants were adventurous seafarers, credited with deceitful propensities. The capital, Megara, famous for white marble and fine clay, was the birthplace of Euclid. # Argos: Thought to be one of the oldest cities in Greece, which is credited with introducing to mainland Greece such military innovations as hoplite tactics and double grip shields. From the 7th to 5th century BCE, the city was a long-time rival to Sparta.